Tail of a Tensai
by FlamingIceNeko
Summary: As it turns out, Fuji isn't immune to ALL of Inui's juices. When his prank goes horribly wrong, the results could get a little...catty. Renamed.
1. Prologue

**A/N:** This is an idea I'd been toying with for a while now. I think I finally got the storyline I want nailed down...so we'll see how it goes! There are no pairings, but if you take out your magnifying glass and squint really hard, maybe you'll make yourself see some. It's not my intent, but if that's how your mind works...what can I do?

**Disclaimer:** Alas, I do not own Prince of Tennis or any of its characters. It's a sad, sad world.

**Prologue: Mad Scientist**

**12:45 AM**

A low humming sound emanated from the overhead lamp. Its brilliant white light caused an elongated shadow to stretch from the solitary figure seated at the black-topped lab table. The individual was hunched over a spread of several notebooks opened on the tabletop. With one hand, he adjusted his square-framed glasses, sending a gleam of reflected light dancing across the wall. A small smile worked its way over his lips as he scratched a flurry of lines in one of his notebooks. Across the top of the page, the words _Inui Sadaharu Juice Data_ were scrawled in the same hasty handwriting.

"Finally." The data master sat back in his chair and scanned his notes. "It's nearly finished now. All of the data is here in full."

As always, Inui had supreme confidence in his carefully compiled research. He had spent hours ironing out the kinks in his data and had taken every precaution to boost the success rate of his newest recipe. He had even borrowed the key to Seishun Gakuen's science laboratory to spend the night creating his masterpiece. And it wasn't just a lack of something better to do on a Friday night that motivated him to go to these extra measures. With all of his meticulous preparations, nothing would go wrong. He was sure of it this time.

But then again, he was always sure. And, now that he thought about it, that hadn't done much for him in the past.

Inui shuddered at the mental image that flashed through his mind, one from the last time he'd created one of his infamous juices. It was a vision of tensai Fuji Syuusuke, who was typically immune to Inui's concoctions, sprawled unconscious on the tennis court – all thanks to a juice that the tensai had later grudgingly described as "worse than Aozu." Now _that_ was the extent of what his confidence had done for him.

Inui quickly banished the memory before any doubts could take root. He had nothing to worry about. He was determined that this time, there would be no way his newest Inui Juice would fail. Absolutely no way. His preparations had all been above reproach. But just to reassure himself, he reread the last line he had written in his notes.

"Chance of success: 98.9 percent," he murmured. He had to admit, these odds were far better than last time's 56 percent. The carnage in Seigaku's tennis club had been almost as widespread as a virus – and they had probably resulted from nothing more than carelessness. Certainly that kind of result couldn't happen again.

…Could it? Preparations or not, there was still a 1.1 percent chance it could backfire.

But that small percentage was exactly what had encouraged Inui to take one final precaution. He had agreed, under strong urging from Fuji – who was apparently still miffed about the last Inui Juice incident –, that only one regular member would be used as a test subject for this escapade. He was actually very lucky that Fuji had offered to help him choose the guinea pig, although he knew that the sadistic tensai was probably just looking for a helpless victim to suffer through the same horrors that he had with the last untested juice.

Shaking his head, Inui reached for the can of energy drink and took a long swig. Whatever happened now was beyond his control. It was too late to turn back. With a sideways glance at his watch, Inui grabbed the rack of test tubes and the beaker of bubbling magenta liquid at his elbow. An anticipatory smile spread across his face as he took one of the test tubes and added its inky blue contents to the beaker. The liquid fizzled, a thin wisp of purple steam curling upward from the beaker, and began to turn colors until it finally settled on a deep indigo. Inui pulled the beaker closer and carefully wafted the vapors towards his face, as he knew was proper laboratory technique. Ironically, his own safety was his number one priority. As for the safety of everyone else…that was an entirely different story.

Whatever he smelled and saw in the mixture must have pleased him, because his smile widened and he sat back in his chair with a satisfied sigh. The mixture in the beaker bubbled lazily as Inui snatched his notebook from the tabletop. Twirling his pencil dexterously in his fingers, he began to record the results of his work. A unique scent began to diffuse through the air while he wrote. Inui scribbled one more line of data and set his notebook aside. "Almost complete," he murmured to himself, taking another test tube from the rack. "One more ingredient."

He poured the viscous bright green liquid into the beaker and watched as the concoction began to boil with renewed vigor. While he did so, he absently scratched his shoulder, and a white hair – one from Echizen Ryoma's cat, Karupin, whom he had found wandering around and returned to the first year regular earlier that day – fell from the sleeve of his shirt into the beaker. It made an almost-silent hissing as it dissolved into the liquid.

Not having noticed the extra ingredient he had unintentionally added, Inui continued with his preparations, stirring the mixture with a glass rod. Carefully, he extracted a sample of the product with a medicine dropper and placed it in a separate Petri dish. He swirled the dish around for a moment while the liquid's color changed yet again, this time to a calm cerulean. It resembled the calm of an ocean just before a typhoon – a color, he realized, more ironically similar to Fuji's electric blue eyes. Inui chuckled in satisfaction and held the dish to the light.

"Yes, it's done now."

Reaching into his pocket with his free hand, he pulled out his cell phone and dialed a few digits into the keypad. To his satisfaction, he didn't have to wait long for a response. A familiar calm voice, one that held what Inui thought was a touch of smugness, answered on the second ring.

"Inui."

"Fuji…I've finished it." Inui gazed fondly at his creation as he spoke. "I wanted you to be the first to know. What shall I name it?"

Fuji chuckled knowingly on the other line, not seeming upset in the least about being called at such a late hour. In fact, Inui could detect a hardly-contained note of excitement in the tensai's words. "Saa…it's up to you, of course. I'm only here to help you test it out."

"Hmm…you're right." Scratching his chin for a moment, an expression of inspiration dawned on Inui's face. Smilingly, he decided, "Super Deluxe Manic Remix." As if in approval of the name, the mixture in the dish bubbled enthusiastically. Inui chuckled.

"You'll be ready to start the testing process tomorrow, right?"

Inui could practically hear Fuji smirking. "Of course. I would hate to miss all the fun."


	2. Chapter 1

**AN: **Sorry it's not quite to the main storyline. I felt like I had to get the background across first. ^.^

**Disclaimer: **I still don't own Prince of Tennis or any of its characters…though I would very much like to.

**One: Ignorance Is Bliss**

"Momo! I never said I would pay, nya!"

The redheaded acrobat watched in exasperation as his kouhai stuffed the last of his sixth burger into his mouth. The younger black-haired boy swallowed loudly and let out a contented sigh, tossing the wrapper onto his tray. It landed in the midst of five identical wrappers, two empty French fry containers, and a king-sized cup of soda. Eiji just blinked his large blue eyes in pure astonishment. How on earth one guy could eat so much was beyond his comprehension. It was completely insane.

Momoshiro took a long sip of his drink and grinned. "Now, now, Eiji-senpai, you should know that when a senpai says 'Let's go grab a bite,' it means it's their treat. You can't just let us go hungry. No, you can't." He shook his head firmly in accordance with his own words and set down his cup, rubbing his hands over his distended stomach. "In that case, thank you so much for the meal!"

Eiji sighed and reached into his now-empty pocket, retrieving nothing but a handful of lint. And even Eiji and his creativity had no use for pocket lint. "Mou…this is really no way to treat a senpai, Momo! Now I have no money to buy that grip tape that I wanted…mattaku!"

His eyes lit up suddenly as an idea formed in his head. He secretly rewarded himself for his genius plan as he flung himself at the smaller boy sitting beside Momoshiro. "Ochibi," he whined as he clung to the irritated first-year. "Will you lend your favorite senpai some money for the grip tape? Pleeeeease?"

"Mada mada dane, Kikumaru-senpai!" the younger boy grumbled, struggling out of Eiji's embrace. He tossed his own wrapper aside and pulled his white cap lower over his eyes. In the shadow of the hat's bill, a smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth. "I think you did say you would take us to lunch, though. You shouldn't have offered if you didn't have enough money."

Eiji pouted, his arms hanging limply at his sides. "Leave it to you to twist my words around…."

Momo laughed at Eiji's dejected expression. "Don't underestimate Echizen and me," he enthused. "Though it is what you said, after all…."

"Shut up," Eiji grumbled. "You always say such things!"

The three continued to bicker, even while the bell over the restaurant door jingled, announcing new customers. The two middle-school boys who had just entered looked over at them curiously, drawn by the sound of their argument. The shorter brown-haired one chuckled, smiling in amusement. "They're at it again, eh, Taka-san?"

Taka, the taller boy, covered his face in embarrassment over his friends' loud disagreement. "Err…should we stop them, Fuji?"

"We might as well." The level-headed tensai started towards his friends' table, still chuckling softly. "I'll need to give them the announcement anyway."

Following close behind him, Taka shook his head and murmured, just loudly enough for Fuji to hear, "I really hope you know what you're doing." But the tensai made no reply, aside from letting his smile widen impishly. Taka sighed. What could he do once Fuji had made up his mind?

The pair walked up to the quarreling threesome with Fuji in the lead. The tensai's amused expression changed to one of mild surprise when he saw the state the argument had reached. Eiji had Echizen in a headlock, and Momo had a death grip on Eiji's upper arms. Echizen looked utterly annoyed with the situation, and Taka and Fuji could hear him mutter "Mada mada dane, senpai-tachi" under his breath.

Momo was the first to realize they were not alone. "Fuji-senpai! Taka-san!" he exclaimed, quickly releasing his hold on Eiji's arms.

Eiji turned around without letting go of Echizen. "Oh? Fujiko and Taka-san?"

"Kikumaru-senpai, let go of me," Echizen growled, squirming in the chokehold Eiji had trapped him in. The redhead looked down and, realizing his mistake, immediately freed the first-year from his grasp while grinning sheepishly.

"Looks like you three had quite the disagreement." Fuji's smile was, once again, amused as always.

As if remembering his former irritation, Eiji instantly turned to Fuji, his eyes flashing. "Yes, and it was because Momo and Ochibi conned me into buying their meals with the money I was going to use to buy the grip tape I wanted, and now I won't have the grip tape for my racquet, and it's all because of them!" he ranted without missing a beat. It was plain to see how he'd earned his reputation as a bundle of energy.

Fuji nodded in understanding. "Grip tape, you say? Well, I hope you don't mind, but I already bought the last one." He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a roll of tape, which Eiji eyed enviously. Balancing the tape in the palm of his hand, Fuji smiled. "I saw you looking at it in the store and thought it might be top-notch if you were the one to want it so badly. So I bought it…but since you want it more than I do, here." He placed the grip tape in Eiji's hand. "You can have it."

Eiji blinked twice in surprise and looked down at the tape. Then a wide, elated grin spread across his face, and he flung himself at Fuji. "Arigatou, Fujiko!" he cried, wrapping his arms around the tensai's neck. "You're the best!"

"I'm glad you like it, Eiji," Fuji chuckled, used to the acrobat's enthusiasm. It was a far-off wish, but he couldn't help hoping that the small gift would do a little to make up for what Eiji would endure later that day.

Momo cleared his throat, reclaiming Fuji's attention as Eiji released him. "So, what brings you two out here, anyway? I thought Fuji-senpai preferred other places to eat."

Fuji nodded, still smiling. "Yes, you're right. I much prefer food with more spice…." He was thinking of his favorite sushi restaurant, the one that served the best wasabi sushi in his opinion. The other four regulars shuddered knowingly, and Fuji gave a small shrug in response.

"We actually came here to tell you that Inui with the help of Ryuzaki-sensei has scheduled a practice this evening in preparation for the National Tournament." He glanced back at Taka, who was looking on awkwardly. "It was Taka's suggestion to check here for you all, and he was spot-on."

Taka rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed. "It's where you usually like to eat," he said modestly.

"You're right about that." Momo laughed. "And it was so very generous of Eiji-senpai to pay for us today…." He trailed off, a bead of sweat appearing on his forehead, when Eiji gave him a dark look. "Just kidding!"

"I wouldn't provoke him, Momo-senpai," Echizen said, standing up. He looked from Momo to Fuji. "What time will the practice be tonight?"

Fuji glanced at the clock on the wall in an offhand manner. "About three hours from now, at four o'clock." He paused and tilted his head a bit to one side. "You'll be able to come, won't you, Echizen-kun?"

"Of course…."

Fuji chuckled at the look of perplexity on Echizen's face. "I was wondering if you would be up for it after eating all of that…." He gestured to the pile of trash, which was equally as large as Momo's, on Echizen's tray. "But it seems I had no need to worry. If you think you can do it, Inui would like to have all of the regulars there."

Momo scratched his head. "Why did Inui schedule such a short-notice practice, anyway? According to his special menu, we're on track for the Nationals, aren't we…?"

"You're right." Fuji nodded. "But he and Ryuzaki-sensei think it would be a good idea for us to hold practice matches today in order to test our improvement." He smiled a little wider. "I'm rather looking forward to it, myself."

"Ehh!" Eiji's eyes were sparkling with excitement. "It does sound like fun, Fujiko, nya!"

"Heh!" Momo crossed his arms, puffing out his chest a little. "I hope I'm against Mamushi. If I am, I definitely won't lose!"

While Momo and Eiji chattered animatedly about the upcoming practice, Fuji started to turn back towards the exit. "Saa, in that case, I'll tell Inui that you'll all be coming." He waved goodbye to his friends and opened the door. The bell let out its silvery jingle as Fuji held the door open for Taka. "See you all tonight, then," he called to the threesome, and then stepped out onto the sidewalk.

Taka followed the tensai outside, an expression of slight concern written across his features. He fell into step beside Fuji, hesitating a minute before he finally voiced the question that had been bothering him for the past few minutes.

"Fuji, you aren't going to tell them?"

The tensai inclined his head to look at Taka, his innocent smile taking on a mischievous quality. "What, about the real reason for the practice? It's all right, Taka-san, they'll find out soon enough."

Taka sighed in defeat. "Listen, just because you're the only one who's immune…."

"It's all right," Fuji repeated, looking forward again. "You haven't got anything to worry about. Inui only needs one test subject, after all, and it isn't you."

As he spoke, Fuji opened his eyes just slightly, but it was just enough to see the hint of a devious gleam in his cerulean orbs.


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N: **The plot thickens, finally! I know it's utterly predictable, but what can I say? I just hope it's written well enough to be enjoyed.

**Disclaimer: **I still don't own Prince of Tennis. Though I wish I owned Fuji. :3

**Two: Miscalculation**

**4:00 PM**

"All right, minna, please gather around," Inui called to the group of Seigaku regulars. He was standing by the tennis court fence with his notebook in hand, penciling in the finishing touches to a section labeled _Special Menu – Seigaku Practice Tournament._ He adjusted his glasses as the other regulars flocked towards him. "I will now explain what we will be doing during this practice."

He looked around at the group. Everyone had managed to show up, though some were looking more excited about this than others. On the one hand, Eiji was practically bouncing with enthusiasm; but at the other end of the spectrum, Kaidoh was watching him with a sullen expression, which was emphasized by his sudden snakelike exhalation. Inui cleared his throat to reclaim everyone's attention before he continued.

"As you may or may not have known, today we will be conducting practice matches in order to put the skills we've learned to the test." He looked down at his notes. "I've already decided on four match-ups based upon play styles, but once all the matches are finished, and depending on how much time has passed, the play order is subject to change." His glasses gleamed when the sun hit them as he looked up. "Are there any questions before I announce the match-ups?"

"I have one, nya!" Eiji's hand shot up in a quirky child-like fashion. Inui acknowledged the redheaded acrobat with a nod, and Eiji continued, "Is there going to be a penalty if we lose a game this time?" His expression was wary, and it had good reason to be. None of the regulars had forgotten the last episode with Inui's "worse-than-Aozu" juice.

Inui glanced at Fuji, an action that went undetected due to his opaque glasses. The tensai had his arms crossed and looked completely relaxed. His light, unchanging smile was somewhat unnerving to the data master. A little perturbed, Inui turned his attention back to Eiji. "If it's my juice you're referring to, no. There will be no penalty for losing today. My latest creation is currently undergoing…testing…at the moment."

Eiji let out a sigh and dragged his hand across his forehead. "What a relief! I was so scared we'd have to drink some of that awful juice again, nya!"

"Awful…?" Inui's eyebrow twitched, and Eiji immediately put up his hands with a nervous laugh. Inui dismissively cleared his throat again and stared down at his notebook, but the acrobat's comment still resonated in his mind, irritating him like a grain of sand he could not be rid of. Certainly, after last time, Eiji may have had reason to criticize, but who was he to undervalue the amount of work Inui invested in his creations? Perhaps, Inui thought with satisfaction, it was a good idea after all to have chosen Eiji to be the guinea pig for his latest testing phase. The hyper redhead needed to learn to appreciate Inui's efforts.

The data master shot another imperceptible glance at the tensai. As he did so, Fuji's placid smile seemed to grow impish, as though the tensai could somehow hear his thoughts and were inwardly agreeing with him.

Inui looked away quickly so as not to cause suspicion – even though his eyes could not be seen anyway. "In any case, I'll proceed with the match-ups. On court A, Fuji and Kaidoh. Court B, Kikumaru and Momoshiro. Oishi and Echizen, you'll take court A next. And finally, Kawamura and I will be next for court B. First two groups, please prepare for your matches."

As the four participants dispersed to gather their racquets, Inui's gaze lingered on Fuji. He was beginning to feel reassured that accepting the tensai's offered assistance had been a well-played move. The accordance they had reached as a result _did_ have a few stipulations, but all in all it had turned out to be a good deal. Fuji had consented to help him with his latest ploy _if _he was guaranteed that he would not become the scapegoat, and Inui, not wanting to turn himself into the object of Fuji's revenge plot, had readily agreed. It was true that Fuji's sickeningly polite little threats had been what really sealed the bargain, but in the grand scheme of things, it should definitely be worth it. If everything played out according to plan, at the end of it all, Inui would have his data, and Fuji would have his revenge.

Even so, a small part of it did seem a little cruel…no doubt Eiji was really in for it.

Feeling the data master's gaze on his back, Fuji turned around then, and a self-satisfied smile touched his lips. Despite himself, Inui felt a droplet of sweat beading on his forehead. Fuji was too good at bargaining. Much too good.

---

**Fifteen Minutes Later**

"Game and match, Fuji! Six games to love!"

The sound of a racquet clattering to the ground caught the attention of every regular. Kaidoh grunted as he fell to his knees on the ground, gasping for a decent breath of air. Sweat rolled down the sides of his face as he looked guardedly across the court at the ever-calm tensai. Fuji's eyes, which he had finally opened halfway through the relatively short match, were the only thing that betrayed his underlying excitement.

Kaidoh dragged his arm across his forehead as Fuji crossed the court to stand at the net. The tensai smiled and held out his hand to help his kouhai to his feet.

"Nice game, Kaidoh. Your stamina is remarkable. It would have dragged on forever if I hadn't been serious from the get-go."

"Y-yeah." Kaidoh ducked his head, embarrassed at Fuji's praise, and laid the head of his racquet over his shoulder. "Nice game, Fuji-senpai."

Fuji chuckled at his reaction as Kaidoh walked off the court, muttering under his breath. Of course, Kaidoh couldn't know the real reason he had decided to end the match so quickly. In fact, none of the regulars could, save Inui and Taka. Fuji smirked a little as his eyes found Taka, who was watching from the sidelines. At first, he'd wondered if it had been a mistake telling Taka about the scheme he was in on, but as expected, Taka had sworn not to tell a soul – once Fuji had promised that Taka wouldn't be the guinea pig, of course.

A mildly sadistic excitement was starting to build within Fuji as he jogged off the court. Struggling to keep from breaking into a smile, he sat down on the bench beneath which his and Eiji's belongings were stashed. A quick glance around him told him that the other regulars were absorbed in Eiji and Momo's ongoing match. None of them were paying him the least amount of attention. Perfect.

Fuji reached into his bag and pulled out a water bottle, his electric blue eyes glinting in anticipation. On the outside, the bottle was completely ordinary and unobtrusive, but its contents were what really made it special. Fuji chuckled softly to himself as he grabbed Eiji's water bottle and laid it in his bag, placing the nearly identical one in the same spot on the bench, next to his own. The exchange was discreet, and Fuji knew that Eiji wouldn't be able to tell the difference between his real drink and Fuji's replacement.

Inwardly congratulating himself for his pranking expertise, the tensai took the damp towel from the bench beside him and draped it over his head. He didn't need the cool-down, but if he couldn't hide his expression, it would all be in vain. Eiji's match would be ending shortly, and then the real fun would begin.

**Ten minutes later**

With an exaggerated groan, Eiji collapsed onto the bench beside Fuji. He grabbed a towel identical to Fuji's and mimicked the tensai's posture, closing his eyes in pleasure. "Kyaa! This feels so good! What a hard match," he complained. "Momo's power play almost did me in! Geez…what a guy."

Fuji laughed softly as he reached for his water bottle, being careful to avoid the acrobat's eyes for fear he would become suspicious. "As expected, you pulled through. Your stamina is improving, Eiji."

As he took a drink, he watched Eiji carefully out of the corner of his eye. The trap had been set flawlessly. He only needed a catalyst to start the reaction. As he studied the acrobat next to him, he idly noticed that his drink tasted slightly off, but then he remembered the new brand of juice his sister Yumiko had recently bought. The mere thought of juice made him even more anxious for Inui's plan to succeed. Setting the bottle aside, he smiled innocently at Eiji and gestured to the redhead's water bottle.

"Saa, you should drink something, or you'll get dehydrated. See, you're out of breath as it is."

Eiji cocked his head a bit to one side. "Ah, you're right! Arigatou, Fujiko!" He grabbed the bottle and, with a contented sigh, took a long drink.

Fuji's lips twitched into a smirk as he looked on with almost uncharacteristic eagerness. He really had nothing personal against Eiji; but the opportunity was too good to pass up. This time around, Fuji would not be the innocent victim of Inui's newest untested juice.

The seconds ticked by, and Eiji finally lowered the bottle, smiling widely. "It was a good idea, Fuji; I feel much better now," he announced, tossing his towel aside. He stretched out his arms as he stood up. "But you know, I don't remember bringing juice instead of water. It was good, though!" He beamed as he snatched his racquet from the bench. "Now we can go watch the other matches! You wanna go, Fujiko, nya?"

Fuji blinked up at him, his expression troubled. Eiji's behavior was completely normal. There had been no gagging, no fainting, no begging for water…none of the things that had happened with Inui's previous creations. Fuji frowned in dissatisfaction. Could it be that Inui had somehow managed a normal juice? If that were the case, then Fuji's one chance for revenge had been utterly wasted.

"Fujiko?" Eiji stooped and poked Fuji in the forehead. "What's wrong? Don't you want to see the other matches?"

The tensai shook his head, summoning his poker face, though it wasn't quite as perfect as it usually was. "Gomen…let's go." He half-smiled at Eiji as he pulled the towel from his head and moved to set it aside. As he did so, he accidentally knocked over his water bottle, and before he could reach out to save it, it clattered to the ground. The lid popped off upon impact, and a shimmering blue liquid spilled out onto the court.

Fuji stared. Blue liquid. Unnaturally blue liquid.

He heard Eiji gasp from behind him. "That's not…!"

Fuji's eyes opened a little wider with his shock as his face paled a shade. It couldn't be. Impossible. This couldn't be happening. With a trembling hand, he reached out and grabbed the bottle. Turning it over, he read the label printed on the side. In tiny, almost microscopic handwriting were scrawled the words _Super Deluxe Manic Remix_. Fuji swallowed convulsively, his expression turning to stone.

"Fujiko!" Eiji exclaimed, snatching the bottle from the tensai's hands. "You're drinking Inui's newest juice? S-sugoi…you're really brave, nya!"

Fuji didn't speak. He couldn't. But Eiji was still watching him. He had to recover quickly – his redheaded teammate couldn't find out what he'd been planning to do. Forcing a small, tight smile, Fuji mustered his best poker face. He reclaimed the bottle and screwed the lid back on, tossing the now half-empty container in his duffel.

"Inui's newest juice," he repeated, barely able to control the slight tremor in his voice. This was bad. This was _very _bad. "Yes, it's quite good after all. I recommend it."

Eiji eyed him in suspicion. He hadn't missed the tensai's initial reaction when the juice had spilled out of the bottle. He knew there was something Fuji wasn't telling him, but he was afraid to find out what. Dismissing the thought, he bounced his racquet against his shoulder impatiently.

"Okay…well, whatever. Are we gonna go watch the other matches or not?"

"Er…" Fuji hesitated. He glanced behind him at the blue liquid that had collected in a shimmering pool on the ground. Shuddering delicately, he let out the breath he'd been holding. He couldn't overreact. So his plan had failed. Nothing of real consequence had happened yet. Maybe, as he'd thought fleetingly before, Inui _had_ created a normal juice with no side effects. It was a slim chance, but it could happen.

Or maybe the effects he was so afraid of would simply be coming later…with a vengeance.

Fuji looked up at Eiji once more and gave a short nod. "All right. Let's go."

But as they headed off in the direction of the court where Echizen was facing Oishi, the brown-haired tensai's thoughts reverted to the juice he had mistakenly drunk. Surely if he had experienced no immediate effects, something else was lurking on the horizon. If this new drink were anything at all like the last one, it would be something much, much worse. And that was what secretly terrified him. He wouldn't let anyone know that, of course – showing his fears would just add insult to injury. Still…he had to wonder.

What on earth was the Super Deluxe Manic Remix going to do to him?


	4. Chapter 3

**AN: ***gasp!* Finally we find out what happens to our favorite sadist! Sorry this has taken so long to update…thanks for bearing with me through all the trials of schoolwork and other such things. Also, just so y'all know, this is kind of a filler chapter, just because I needed the internal conflict. Thanks for reading! :3

**Disclaimer: **Prince of Tennis is not something I own. Just something I write about as a rabid fangirl.

**Three: To Skin a Cat**

**The Following Day**

Early morning sunlight filtered in through the open window, splaying a warm patch of amber across the floor. On the windowsill, a mockingbird lighted and began to sing a cheerful tune. The scent of budding sakura blossoms wafted on a gentle breeze, filling the bedroom with its sweet fragrance.

The sleeping form of Fuji Syuusuke lay huddled beneath the covers, tucked halfway over his head. His eyes were closed, his expression one of complete serenity. His honey-brown hair was disheveled from the night; it fanned out around his face and gave him an innocently childish appearance. He slept soundly, all thoughts and worries of the previous day's events replaced by sweet, dreamless slumber.

The glowing digits of the alarm clock on his bedside table shifted as another minute ticked by. A light, airy melody began to play from the radio feature, swelling to a crescendo just as a limp hand wandered towards the _off _button. Fuji moaned a little as he withdrew his hand back under the warmth of his covers, unwilling to come back to reality just yet. He pulled the sheets farther over his head and scrunched his eyes shut in an attempt to block out the light coming through the window.

A soft creak announced the opening of the bedroom door. Fuji kept his eyes closed and stayed within his cocoon of bedcovers, uninterested in finding out who it was. Now that he had started to wake up, his mind was feeling a bit foggy, as though he hadn't gotten enough sleep. He could feel the beginnings of a headache pulsing – of all places – through the sides of his head. Strange. He never really got sick; his immune system tended to ward off any sickness most of the time. But he couldn't deny that he was feeling a little off this morning.

A feminine voice floated in from the doorway. "Syuusuke…wake up."

"Ohayo, nee-san," Fuji mumbled from under the covers, automatically responding to his sister's voice. The hoarseness of his own voice surprised him slightly; his greeting had come out a little thinner and weaker than normal. Wonderful, he thought dully. He really must be getting sick.

Yumiko's heels clicked against the wooden floor as she crossed the room to stand beside Fuji's bed. "Get up, sleepyhead. You're gonna be late for school," she chuckled as she gently shook his shoulder. "Your friends aren't going to let you get away with skipping morning practice, so you'd better get moving."

Her younger brother burrowed a little farther under the covers, suddenly feeling cold. "Hai, hai…I'll be up in a minute."

Yumiko made a disapproving sound under her breath. "If you're not up in five minutes, I'm going to drag you out of bed," she warned. "I'll be counting!"

Fuji waited until her footsteps faded down the hallway before he reluctantly inched back the covers. Immediately, he hid his face in the pillow. How could the light streaming through the window have intensified so much in such a short amount of time? It was nearly blinding. Maybe this headache was going to turn into a migraine. Just great. Why, he wondered, did he have to suddenly get sick?

As he was lying there, debating whether or not he should just go back to sleep and forget about school, he had a sudden revelation, one that caused his eyes to shoot open in realization.

Of course. There could be only one culprit for the way he was feeling, and its name was _Super Deluxe Manic Remix._

Fuji let out an exasperated groan. If he had known _these _would be the side effects of Inui's concoction, he would never have even tried to force it upon Eiji. No amount of revenge was worth these results.

"Syuusuke! Your five minutes are up!"

So much for staying home from school today. At the risk of being dragged out of bed by his older sister – who most likely wasn't joking when she'd threatened him – Fuji slowly sat up and peeled back the sheets the rest of the way. The dull ache along the sides and top of his skull persisted, growing slightly sharper with his movements. The tensai reached up to gently feel along the tender area, hoping it wasn't a migraine after all. He winced as his fingers encountered a small ridge that throbbed under the slight pressure. Odd. Had he hit his head on something recently…?

Suddenly, he froze. Something furry and soft twitched under his fingertips. Two rounded triangular-shaped objects were attached at corresponding places on the sides of his head, behind the temples...right where his ears should have been.

This was most definitely not natural.

Fuji vaulted out of bed with an agility that would have made Eiji green with envy. Ignoring his throbbing headache, he hurried over to the mirror hanging on the opposite wall. As he came to a stop in front of the glass, a sharp, disbelieving gasp escaped his lips. His eyes widening in horror, he pressed his trembling fingertips to the glass.

Attached to his head was a pair of furry white feline ears.

Fuji's mouth hung open in shock, but he couldn't form a single word. His eyes were glued to his reflection, to the bizarre new addition to his anatomy that seemed to have formed overnight. He carefully lifted his hand from the mirror to his ears and ran his fingers over their furry surface. Giving one of them an experimental pinch, he discovered with a wince that they were as much a part of him as everything else.

He could feel the panic building inside, and he fought to keep the hysteria under control. For the always level-headed tensai, such a feeling was almost completely new to him, and he wasn't quite sure how to handle it. Then again, he asked himself, how should anyone handle sprouting cat ears overnight? This situation wasn't exactly one the average person had experienced, and Fuji was no exception. After all, these kinds of things didn't just _happen_.

Fuji blinked several times, just to be absolutely positive he wasn't dreaming. But each time he drew back his lids, the ears – he cringed at the sight of them – were still there. It appeared they wouldn't be going away any time soon, either. Was there even a chance of getting rid of them? He couldn't be stuck like this forever, right?

Fuji swayed a little, feeling lightheaded. He stumbled back over to his bed, calling out a weak "I'm coming," even as Yumiko knocked a little too firmly on his bedroom door. As he sat down, a sharp pain, almost identical to the headache that still throbbed behind his new ears, shot up his spine. Bewildered, he twisted around to rub his back, and his sensitive eyes caught a glimpse of a slight movement behind him. His breathing stuttered.

A tail was protruding from the base of his spine, twitching sporadically. Fuji gripped the back of a nearby chair for support. Not a tail, too! This was getting completely out of hand…Fuji wondered if he weren't just going crazy. Or perhaps, slightly more reasonably, he was just stressed. Overworked, exhausted from practice, _something. _Whichever one it was, he just couldn't force himself to believe that such an impossibility was actually happening to him. It was like something out of a sci-fi movie. A scene from a movie he'd watched recently flashed through Fuji's mind like a bolt of lightning. A mad scientist, cackling as he poured various ingredients into a beaker of boiling liquid – a potion designed to alter the DNA of the scientist's unsuspecting victims…

Shaking his head, Fuji tightened his grip on the chair and squeezed his eyes shut. His knuckles turned white with the effort, but he could not seem to relax his hold. What kind of insanity was this? If this were like the movie, he would most definitely be the victim. And the scientist…as crazy as it sounded, Fuji had a fairly good idea of who was behind all of this. As his reasoning ability slowly came back to him and he forced himself to open his eyes again, he was able to make sense of the chaotic thoughts swirling through his head.

One. This was no dream. It was completely real, and it was not going to change any time soon.

Two. He was not going insane, and this was not a product of stress. He'd seen his reflection with his own eyes and felt the ears attached to his head, and it had been enough proof to make him believe that they were just as substantial as everything else.

Three. Something had caused this. The most likely explanation was the untested juice he had drunk yesterday during practice.

Four. He very well knew who the "mad scientist" was in this scenario. He had previously worked alongside that scientist, and look where it had gotten him.

Fuji let out a low hiss through his teeth as he clenched his fist around the back of the chair. The wood protested gratingly as his nails ground against the wood. Yes, he knew exactly who had done this to him. And that person, when Fuji made him face the results of his latest scientific endeavor, was going to pay a heavy price for doing it.

"_Inui Sadaharu…"_


End file.
